The Unforgettable Fire
by Youthful
Summary: Shikamaru has a sister. She's a calm person, much like her brother, but not when Kiba is around. Why is that? Lots of drama! Especially when a certain prettyboy from the Akatsuki decides to join the story during later chapters, yeah. Kiba/OC, Deidara/OC.
1. Shikamaru's Day Off

Hey there!

This is my first fanfic ever, so please, any reviews and advice will totally make my day. Even flamers are welcome! Flames are better than nothing, yeah? I just want to know what you people think.

**Warning for later chapters: Nasty language, v****iolence, blood, sex +++ (Seriously, this one is not for kids or for people who has a weak heart.)**

I've already thought the story through. Yeah, there's nothing wrong with my imagination (except it's crazy,) but the warning might change a bit when I put the next chapters up, because I'm not 100% sure yet how it will turn out when it's done.

A short summary: In this story Shikamaru has a sister. She's one year older than him, also a chunin and the main character in my fic. She is normally a calm person, kind of like her brother, but much to his annoyance she's not calm at all when Kiba is around. Why is that? Read to find out. Oh, and yeah, things will get dramatic when a certain prettyboy from the Akatsuki decides to join the story in later chapters...

"This is talking."

_This is thinking._

**Disclaimer: If I did own Naruto, this wouldn't be the place to hang out. (No offense.) Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**---**

**Chapter 1: Shikamaru's Day Off**

Shikamaru was really tired. He was lying on his back in the garden with his hands under his head, watching the clouds and simply enjoying to have some time off for the first time since something that felt like forever.

_What a beautiful day._ _No missions, no plans, no people around… I sure needed this._

He had been busy with missions and other tasks ever since he became a chunin, not being able to do any of his favourite hobbies anymore, like shogi, watching the clouds, sleeping… Ok, he had of course been sleeping, but not too often, and definitely not for as long as he was used to.

This day, though… Shikamaru felt so relieved. Like he wasn't just watching the clouds, more like he was one of them, just floating by, not having to worry about any of the daily problems that came with being a ninja. He couldn't be more pleased. Until he heard two familiar voices nearby, that is…

"Seriously, dog boy, stop following me!" shouted a female voice.

"I'm not following you," yelled the male voice in response. "You wish! I'm simply here to visit your brother! Meeting you on the way was just an unlucky coincidence."

_Always that troublesome yelling..._

Shikamaru sighed. Those two were such a drag when they got together. It had been that way ever since they started the ninja academy, which might have been normal back then when they were kids, but now? You'd think the teasing, fighting and yelling would stop as they grew older… They were still at it though, maybe even worse than before.

"Hah, coincidence, yeah right! Maybe you should improve that amazing sense of smell you're always bragging about, then!" The voices kept getting closer, louder...

"I didn't say I couldn't smell you! I was already on the way, what was I supposed to do? Go back? No way, Shikamaru can't help having an annoying sister like you! It won't keep Akamaru and me from visiting him!"

_Great... _

"Whatever you say, moron... Just stop bothering me," the girl said, a lot more calm this time.

Shikamaru could see them now, and even though he wished he was invisible, they had unfortunately noticed him too.

"Shikamaru, you have a visitor." His sister was standing in front of him with her hands on her hips. "Be a dear and entertain him for a while, I'm getting sick of his-"

"Oy, Shikamaru!" Kiba cut her off. "You probably already know, but your sister really is a pain in the ass."

She gave Kiba a dangerous look and opened her mouth as if she was about to say something, but instead she rushed into the house, clearly angry. Kiba laughed.

"Hi Kiba... Akamaru... Long time, no see." Shikamaru grinned lazily to his friend and his loyal dog.

"Indeed." Kiba smiled. "Akamaru and I was out training in the woods when I remembered hearing something about you getting back from that mission yesterday, so we decided to check up on you."

"That's nice," the lazy ninja answered, not really sure if he meant it. After all he just wanted some time to relax, and Kiba wasn't exactly known to be the most calm guy around... "How have you guys been lately?"

"We've been training like crazy! Unlike you, we need to get ready for the next chunin exams. Right, Akamaru?" Kiba's four-legged friend gave a "woof" full of energy in response.

_---_

_"You probably already know, but your sister really is a pain in the ass."_

His voice was running through her mind, as usual.

_Me, a pain in the ass!? As if he has the right to lecture anyone about being a pain in the ass!_

Kaori slammed the door behind her.

_I'm getting so sick of that little… Arrrh! Why does he always have to pick up a fight? Gah… I could really use a nice cup of tea right now. _

She walked towards the kitchen.

_If I'm a pain in the ass then he must be like… The king of pain in the ass!_

_…_

_The king of pain in the ass? … Ok, Kaori, you need to get a grip now._

_He's just an annoying brat. Who cares what he thinks, anyway? Why would it matter to you? Hah. It doesn't! You know better than to let this get to you._

As if she hadn't already tried telling herself that a thousand times.

_I wish he would just stay out of my sight and stop talking to me._

_…_

_Then hating him would be so much easier._

_---_

Wow, I'm done with the first chapter of my first fanfic ever. It feels great. This sure is funny!

Thanks for reading if you got this far. Please review!

By the way, English is not my native language, so if you spot any spelling mistakes or anything else you find annoying, let me know. ;)


	2. The First Meeting With the Inuzuka Boy

Ok, so here's the second chapter for my first fanfic ever. I'm sorry if you find the first chapters a bit boring, but they will really just be about Kaori and Kiba, how it all started, why they're always at eachother and why Kaori changes so much from what she's really like when Kiba is around. There will be drama, just be patient. ;)

Read and review, please! I need help to improve.

**Again: I do not own Naruto in any way. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**---**

**Chapter 2 - The first meeting with the Inuzuka boy (which turned out to be anything but pleasant)**

_Flashback_

"Shikamaru! Kaori!" Yoshino yelled from downstairs. "Today is an important day! Get yourselves out of bed!"

Kaori sighed and heard her brother mumbling something about it being "too troublesome to get up this early" from the other side of the wall. She tried covering her ears with the pillow, but as the young girl already had experienced so many times before, that wouldn't keep her mother's voice from reaching to her ears.

"DON'T MAKE ME GET UP THERE!"

Kaori practically jumped out of her bed, put her clothes on as fast as she could and ran down the stairs two steps at a time, quickly followed by Shikamaru. Both of them knew better than to test their mother's patience.

She was in the kitchen, making breakfast and appeared to be a lot calmer than any of them had expected.

"Good morning mom… Dad…" Kaori sat down next to her father.

"Good morning," he smiled at her. Then he moved his gaze over to Shikamaru.

"So, son… Your first day at the ninja academy, eh? I bet you'll love it."

Kaori fought the urge to laugh, but accidently let out a snort. Shikaku elbowed her.

"Uhm, yeah," Kaori helped her father, being perfectly aware that her brother wasn't exactly the easiest person to motivate. "It's a lot of fun." She fought the urge to laugh again, this time more successful. "And you get Iruka as your sensei, he's the best. Not to mention he actually cares about his students."

"And it's not just boring lessons, you know," Shikaku continued. "It'll be a lot of fun, and I bet you'll have a lot of free time, especially the first-"

"Ahem!" He was cut off by a fake cough from Yoshino.

"Un, then again, the most important thing is that you take your education seriously, of course," he said, not wanting his wife to join in on the conversation. "We expect that."

Shikamaru finally sat down on the other side of the table. Then he did something unexpected, he grinned. "Thanks, but you really don't have to do this," he said. "It will be troublesome, but I know I have to get a grip. After all, this is my first step on the way to becoming a ninja."

Both Shikaku and Kaori felt very relieved after hearing this statement, and Kaori could've sworn she saw a quick smile planted on her mother's face.

---

"Hi Tenten!" Kaori smiled at her classmate. "This is my younger brother, Shikamaru. It's his first day here at the academy."

"Hello Kaori," she smiled back. "Hi Shikamaru, nice to meet you."

"Nice meeting you too," he answered short, not looking very comfortable.

Kaori pulled him aside. "Is something wrong, little brother?"

He shrugged. "There's a lot of people here. A lot of noise."

She sighed and shook her head. "Ah, come on, don't be like that. It's the first day, it's tradition for the families to follow, of course there's a lot of people. Where did that spirit from earlier today go? Let's go meet some of the other newbies!" Kaori dragged Shikamaru with her. "Over there's some people I haven't seen before. I bet they'll be in your class."

A lot of nervous looking kids were standing in a group with their families. Kaori noticed her dad talking to some of the other parents and walked over to them.

"There's my daughter. Oh, and my son too. He's also new, starting today," Shikaku told the others, looking slightly proud. "Shikamaru, Kaori, this is Kiba. He's from the Inuzuka clan, and this is his mom, Tsume."

Kaori tried not to stare.

_She looks even scarier than our mom…_

_And that boy… What's up with that confident glare?_

_It's his first day here, he's supposed to be nervous._

"Nice meeting you," Kaori began, but got cut off by the Inuzuka boy.

"Yeah, we're from the Inuzuka clan, the greatest dog trainers the world has ever seen" he said, smirking confidently.

"Ok, that's… good to know," Kaori replied, kind of shocked by this boy's unexpected... Greeting?

"Yeah. We train dogs and we use them in combat. Just so you know, our techniques can't be beaten easily just by a normal ninja."

_Can't be beaten just by a normal ninja! What's that supposed to mean?_

"Excuse me, dog boy, what's that supposed to mean?" Kaori put her hands on her hips.

"Nothing, really… I'm just telling you a fact. A normal ninja like, for example, your-"

"Ok, then!" Shikaku cut him off, laughing nervously. "Hah, I think we better go find your mother now! Right, Kaori? Shikamaru? Let's go. It was nice meeting you again, Tsume." He waved and dragged his kids with him.

"What was that?! Who does that kid think he is?" Kaori was furious.

"You shouldn't care about it," her father replied. "They're like that sometimes. The Inuzuka clan are very confident people, and they can seem a little arrogant from time to time if you don't know them."

"_Seem _arrogant? Come on, that boy had 'arrogant' written all over him," she snorted.

---

"Seriously, why do you hang out with that guy?" Kaori asked her younger brother.

They were walking home from the ninja academy. Two weeks had passed since Shikamaru's first day and he had already started to make some new friends.

"You mean Naruto?" Shikamaru replied, being perfectly aware that the blonde boy wasn't the one his sister was talking about. "Well, I know most people don't like him, but really, he's nice and-"

"Shikamaru, are you _trying _to be annoying? Come on, you know I'm talking about Kiba."

"Oh," her brother pretended to be innocent. "Well, he's funny."

"_Funny? _He's not funny! He's annoying. He's been teasing me since the first day we met him. He's loud, hot-headed and arrogant. Since when did you care about fun, anyway?"

"Since when did _you _care about people being annoying?"

Shikamaru had a point. She was normally the type of kid who didn't care much for trouble. Whenever someone tried to piss her off, she'd just be cool about it and ignore them. Caring would be "too troublesome" as her father and brother would say.

"I don't… I…" Kaori was thrown back a bit by this comment. "There's... Just something about him. Someone needs to set him straight."

"Sure." Her lazy brother really couldn't care less.

_End of flashback_


	3. A Walk In the Storm

Here's chapter 3! Be cool - read and review. ;)

**I do not own Naruto. If I did, there would be a lot more Kiba action going on. Naruto belongs to** **Masashi Kishimoto. (What would we do without him?)**

---

**Chapter 3 - A Walk In the Storm**

It was a stormy day in Konoha. The wind was howling outside and the huge rain drops were crashing against the window. It had been that way for about a week, but it was also the closest thing to action that anyone had gotten lately. Putting the weather aside, Konoha had been really quiet for the last few weeks. Nothing exciting had been happening and the only missions given were D and C Rank's.

Shikamaru was lying half asleep on the couch. Kaori was sitting in a chair at the other side of the table, reading a book about dream analysis when suddenly she started to laugh.

"Haha! Listen to this: if your dream includes fighting a mad dog and you end up killing it, it means something fortunate will happen in your life."

The lazy ninja slowly opened his eyes and glared at his sister, not understanding what was so funny.

"Don't you get it? _Mad dog? _Killing it will be fortunate?" She obviously found this very amusing.

"Interesting," he yawned. "Keep reading. Let me know if you find something in there saying what it means if your sister can't stop talking about the mad dog…"

Kaori looked confused. "... I don't get it."

"Nevermind..." At times like these, Shikamaru seriously wondered if she was adopted or something.

"I'm bored." She closed the book.

He sighed. "Being bored from time to time is only healthy."

"No, it's boring," she replied.

"Obviously that too." With that said, Shikamaru closed his eyes again, hoping that Kaori would take the hint.

"Let's go train or something." Clearly she wouldn't.

"… Have you seen the weather lately?"

"Yeah, I know. It's raining and it's windy, but… We've stayed inside for like a week now with nothing to do. Don't you ever get sick of it?"

She realized how stupid that question must have sounded right after she asked it. After all, her brother was probably the laziest guy in Konoha.

"Oh, fine. I'll go by myself. It can't be that bad." The young kunoichi looked at her brother, waiting for a response.

"Good luck."

He smirked as she headed for the door. Even though it was troublesome, he did sometimes find his sister's stubbornness kind of amusing.

Kaori put on her rain coat, some boots and grabbed her umbrella.

"This should do."

---

She was wrong. She had been walking for five minutes and was already soaking wet. She'd tried using her umbrella, but when she opened it the wind lifted her off of the ground and wouldn't let her down again until she let go of the friggin' thing. Still, she couldn't head home just yet. Then Shikamaru would be saying "I told you so," and if there was _one _sentence she hated more than anything else, it would have to be that one.

Sure, Kaori and her brother were similar when it came to a lot of things, but the difference between them was her stubbornness. She hated to admit that she was wrong, no matter what the situation was. Shikamaru on the other hand couldn't care less about things like that (probably because the guy's never wrong about anything, but still…) Even when it came to an unimportant trifle like this, her wanting to go out when he stated it wouldn't be a good idea, she just couldn't let herself admit that he had been right. No, she'd drown in the rain before she'd let that happen.

After about fifteen minutes of walking she reached the forest.

_Why not. I've already gotten this far…_

Kaori kept on going. She had already let the thought of training go, probably at the same time she let go of her umbrella, but after a while walking in this weather wasn't so horrible anymore. Feeling the cold rain and the violent wind against her body wasn't exactly a pleasure in itself, but at least it made her feel more alive than sitting at home having nothing to do.

She realized she wasn't very far from Tenten's place and decided to pay the weapon specialist an unannounced visit. When she reached her house she knocked on the door, hoping that her friend was in so that she could warm herself up and maybe become dry before she started heading home. Not that it would matter, if the rain didn't stop (and at this time it didn't seem like it would) she'd become just as wet and cold as she was now once she'd step outside again.

"Kaori..." Tenten was the one opening the door. "You're soaking wet! Come in!"

"Hi Tenten." Kaori stepped inside. "I was out walking and I decided to pay you a visit. I hope you weren't busy."

"Busy with what? There's nothing to do these days," she shrugged.

"I know, right? That's exactly what I thought when I decided to go for a walk."

"You must be crazy to go for a walk in this weather. You'll get sick!" Tenten replied, looking slightly worried.

"Well, I didn't realize it was that bad, so I asked Shikamaru to come train with me. He wouldn't, though, so I decided to go by myself. But then training was ruled out when I stepped outside and I almost couldn't walk without getting thrown in the air..."

"Then why didn't you just go back inside?" Tenten asked, looking confused.

"Well, you know… I already told Shikamaru I'd go, and that the weather probably wasn't that bad…"

"Aaah, I see," Tenten answered knowingly. "Then of course you, being the person you are, couldn't just go back inside."

"Exactly," Kaori blushed a little.

"That's so typical of you," Tenten giggled.

"I know…"

"Anyway, I'll go find some clothes you can borrow. Just take a seat in the kitchen and I'll make some tea when I get back."

"Thanks, Tenten, that's nice of you." Kaori smiled.

---

They had been sitting by the kitchen table for hours, talking, when Kaori just couldn't help it anymore. She just had to ask:

"So… How are things with you and Neji?"

Tenten started to blush immediately. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, I'm not talking about training, that's for sure. Or I guess it could be called training if you-"

"Kaori!" The weapon kunoichi practically shouted, looking rather thunderstruck.

"Sorry…" Kaori started, but couldn't help but laugh when she saw the horrified expression on her friend's face.

Tenten kept looking shocked for a few seconds, but then she burst into laughter too.

"Well, if you must know… Things are great," she finally answered.

"Oh really?" Kaori raised an eyebrow.

"Really… But enough about that. I'm not the kind of girl to kiss and tell."

"So there have been kissing?" Now she was really curious.

"I didn't say that…" Her face turned into an even deeper shade of red than earlier. "Ok, fine. Maybe a little."

"Hah! I knew it!" Kaori hugged her. "I'm so happy for you! You've been in love with him for like ages, and finally he's seeing you as more than just a teammate! This is wonderful!"

"It is, isn't it?" Tenten smiled, staring out in the air. "So," she suddenly said. "What about you? Got your eyes on someone special?"

"Me? No, you know… I don't really have time for those things."

"Is that so?" Now Tenten was the one raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, that's so. Why do you ask? I mean, sure, there are a lot of handsome shinobis in this village, but… I just haven't found anyone suitable for me yet."

"Kaori… We've been friends for many years now. You know everything about me, you even understand the things I try to deny. Don't you think it goes both ways?"

"I'm not following…"

"Are you telling me that you have no feelings for Kiba whatsoever?"

"Un, I guess if you by feelings mean I really can't stand the guy, then sure, I do have very strong feelings for him."

"If you say so."

"I do say so."

"Fine."

"Fine."

"…Sure."

"Sure." Kaori wanted to change the subject now. "So… Wow. It really is, like, nothing to do nowadays."

"No, really, like, nothing." Tenten grinned, imitating the way Kaori spoke.

"Haha, shut it." She rolled her eyes, laughing. "Anyway, I guess I should get going now. Thank you so much for the tea, the conversation and for letting me borrow your clothes."

"No problem, Kaori," she smiled. "Thanks for visiting."

---

The weather had, if possible, gotten even worse over the last couple of hours. The gigantic rain drops felt like small sized rocks getting thrown against Kaori's cheeks and she could hear the distant sound of thunder. It had also become completely dark and foggy outside, she couldn't even spot her own feet if she tried.

_Great. Just great. Now how am I going to get home?_

By the time she reached the forest she was clinging to the ground on all four, a vivid picture of next day's newspapers appearing in her mind.

'_Young kunoichi disappeared without a trace during last night's storm._

"_She just wouldn't listen," the girl's younger brother stated in our interview with him. Nara Shikamaru claimed he was warning her that "training in this weather will be troublesome," but it seems his words didn't reach to her. Instead of listening she just went out on her own, and boy, the consequences…'_

_I'm a ninja, for crying out loud… A little feisty weather won't be the thing finishing me off._

A tree crashed down right in front of her, only a few centimetres from smashing her head into bits. Her eyes widened at the sight. It was as if the tree did it on purpose, telling her to stop acting so goddamn cool.

_Ok, then. Finding some shelter it is._

_---_

After crawling on her legs for a few more minutes, desperately avoiding all the trees and rocks heading in her direction, Kaori had finally managed to find a small cave where she was sheltered from the storm. She had no idea how long she had been sitting there for when she started to sense someone's presence. She couldn't hear anything but the storm, she couldn't see anything because all was dark and the only thing she could smell was the moist of the rotten cave she was placed in. Even so, her instinct told her that someone was nearby. Who, other than her, would be hanging out in the forest in this weather, not to mention at these hours?

The last person she expected, she soon found out.


	4. I Told You So

Here's chapter 4, finally! I was struggling _so_ much with this chapter and I really have no idea why. xD I just felt like changing it all the time, lol.

Anyway, hope you like it.

Please review. Seriously, all these hits and only one reviewer? That's not cool, guys. -.- (Many thanks to her, though. My first and only reviewer. She motivated me a lot!)

**I do not own Naruto. Naruto belongs to ****Masashi Kishimoto.**

---

**Chapter 4 - I Told You So**

This was starting to get rather stressful. She could feel it, someone was getting closer by the second, but how the hell was she supposed to find out who? Was it someone from her village? Was it an enemy? It was impossible for her to tell when she couldn't use any of her senses. At this time all she could do was sit there, hoping that the person or creature outside wouldn't find her. At least not if it turned out to be a foe. She was in no state to fight right now. The young kunoichi was shivering so bad it felt like her entire body was about to turn into ice. She had also used most of her chakra in her efforts of keeping her feet, and hands, on the ground. In addition to her being anxious, her inner self was also starting to get quite angry.

_Frick! Why is it so much harder to stay cool when you're cold and alone? Get yourself together now!_

Kaori didn't have to worry for long, fortunately. She might actually have preferred worrying instead of the surprise she was up for, though. Someone was in the opening of the cave. She still couldn't see anything, but at least she could hear someone moving now. That and…

"Arf!" A familiar sound made its way to her ears.

"A-Akamaru?"

"Arf!" The white dog repeated himself. He walked towards the girl and sat down next to her.

Kaori patted him on the back. "Aww… What are _you_ doing out in the forest all by yourself?"

"He's not alone," she heard a male voice coming from the entrance.

"K-Kiba…"

_Great. Just great. Of course he wasn't alone. Those two are inseparable. _

"Hi Kaori. Need a little help there?" He tried not to laugh, but the tone of his voice immediately revealed the fact that he was finding her situation ever so amusing.

"No, Kiba, I do not need any help. I'm perfectly fine by myself," she answered.

_Sure. That's why I'm sitting in here, practically freezing to death._

"Oh, you're fine? Then why are you sitting in an old cave at these late hours?"

Even with the dark surrounding them, making Kaori unable to even know where Kiba was standing right now, she could've sworn she saw him smirking. The picture of him, just feeding of her misery, was now more vivid in her head than ever. That says a lot, considering the fact that Kiba gave her the pleasure of seeing it in real life as often as possible.

"Actually, I was just going for a walk," she tried sounding as convincing as possible. "Then I decided that this, un, grotto would be a good place to get some rest."

Now he couldn't resist laughing anymore. "I see, so this is what you normally do when you're out walking? Crawl inside of the first rotten cavern you find? I guess that explains your personality…"

"Oh, shut it, dog boy," she replied, not trying to hide the fact that she was annoyed by his presence. "What are you doing out in the forest now, anyway?"

"A weak storm like this never keeps Akamaru and me from training. It only makes us stronger. You should try it yourself sometime, then maybe you won't end up like this the next time you decide to take a walk."

Kaori shrugged. "Listen, mister, you have a big attitude problem that you really need to w-"

"But," he cut her off, "I guess since you're fine by yourself, we'll get going again."

"Do _not_ interrupt me!"

She heard Kiba starting to move as if he really was about to go.

_Oh for the love of… Fine._

"Wait…" She said quietly, hating herself for not wanting them to leave her behind. "How did you find me? I mean, I know your senses are like a thousand times stronger than normal people's, but… In this weather, I couldn't even see where I was going. I couldn't smell anything because of the rain, and normally you wouldn't be able to either."

"That's the difference between a Nara and an Inuzuka," he replied insultingly. "When a challenge appears, we take it. We do not run off to find shelter."

_Chill, Kaori… Chill. He's just trying to piss you off. Don't let him._

"You didn't even answer my question, moron," she said, trying to stay calm.

"Sure I did," he stated. "When I felt someone's presence I decided to find out who it was. Even though the weather made it harder than it would've been on a normal day, that didn't stop me." The Inuzuka took a short break. "I was, of course, hoping to find something a bit more challenging than a scared little girl hiding from the storm, but oh well… I guess even the life of a ninja can't _always _be thrilling."

"Excuse me!" Now she was furious. As usual, no matter what her head told her, staying calm with this guy around was impossible. "Last time I checked I was one rank above you, not to mention older than you!"

"Yeah, like eight months older than me… Whew!" He said sarcastically. "And sure, you're a chunin and I'm only a genin… Yet I find you out here not being able to get a way from a little stormy weather?" The shinobi clicked his tongue.

"Holy mother of… Kiba, I swear. I might not be able to see you, but if you don't get a grip - and this is a promise - I'll follow your voice and I'll strangle you with my bare hands!"

"Oh, feisty, are w… Ooow! Kaori, what the hell?!"

Before she even realized herself, she had gotten on her feet and somehow managed to find out where Kiba was sitting. Despite her words, she did not strangle him. She did, however, bitch slap him with all the strength she had left.

"I warned you," was all she said.

"Why you… You bitch!" Now he was angry, and not without a reason. Kaori didn't exactly have a weak right hand.

"I've always wanted to do that." She ignored his outburst, smiling like a fool. "Wow. I feel so much better now."

Kiba became quiet. The girl who had just bitch slapped him didn't say anything either, not to mention Akamaru appeared to stay strangely calm in all of this. Hadn't she just become violent toward the dog's owner?

_Hah, even Akamaru seems to realize that Kiba had it coming._

_---_

They sat there for quite some time without exchanging a single word. Kiba was too outraged to say anything. Kaori didn't want to speak because she was afraid he'd take whatever she'd say as an apology, and she was by no means sorry for what she did. The three simply just sat there, not making a single noise. Well, that's not entirely true. Akamaru had fallen asleep after a short while and was now snoring so loud they almost didn't notice the violent weather still going on outside.

"Why are you still here?" Kaori finally decided to break the tension.

"I don't know," Kiba sighed.

"Don't say you're still pouting about that slap?" She asked, sounding annoyed.

"I'm not," he answered.

"Good, because you deserved it."

"I guess I did."

_What did he just say?!_

Kaori could not believe what she was hearing. "You… You what?"

"Don't push it," he replied. Then he got up, yawning and stretching a bit. "Akamaru… Come on, boy, it's late. Let's get going."

Kaori heard Akamaru get up to follow his owner. Before she realized it she had gotten up too, and whilst all her senses were telling here not to ask, her mouth just wouldn't obey:

"Can I come with you?"

She was beyond happy he couldn't see her as these words left her lips, the colour of her skin turning into a somewhat dark shade of red.

"I thought you didn't need our help?"

"I don't! But I guess it wouldn't hurt having some company on the way home…"

"Come here," he said, placing one of his arms around her waist.

"W-what are you doing?" She asked him, startled by his move.

"I'm trying to seduce you," he mockingly replied. "Seriously, what do you think I'm doing? I'm bringing you home in one piece."

The shivering that ran through Kaori's body and the fact that her knees were shaking could probably be excused by her freezing outside in this weather for hours. The warm and tingling feeling filling her stomach was a lot harder to explain.

---

He followed the female chunin all the way to her home, having a firm grip around her waist all the time. (If he hadn't then Kaori would be long gone at this time, that's for sure.) He wasn't even complaining. Well, complaining would probably have been useless anyway since the girl hadn't opened her mouth once during the entire trip, but still. He was pretty proud of his own behaviour.

"You don't live here," Kaori finally decided to say something as they reached her house.

"Really? Thanks for the info," Kiba replied, again sarcastically.

"No, I mean… It's not even the same direction as your h-" she was cut off when the wind suddenly decided to throw them both against the door, making sure Kiba's body was pressed up against hers.

_Oh damn._

She was thunderstruck. Her hands were tightening around his arms, she couldn't think straight. When she looked up to see his eyes she found him staring back. He looked so serious, she couldn't remember ever having seen him like this before. The current position made Kaori scream on the inside. Feeling his body heat, being able to breathe in his scent, it was all just... She just wanted to...

Suddenly Kiba pulled back. "Sorry about that," he said, starting to scratch his head. "You should get inside now. You'll probably get sick."

"Uhm, sorry, right, yeah…" Even though she really hated it, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed as she reached for the door knob. "… Are you sure you'll be OK? I guess if you want, you could come inside for a while to warm up."

_I'd be more than willing to help you warm up…_

_No, no! None of these thoughts right now!_

_Concentrate on getting yourself out of this, you're acting like a fool!_

_Gaaah, stop talking!_

"Uhm, I mean, you know, un, Shikamaru," she added, too stressed out by the situation to know what she was saying.

"Shikamaru? Kaori, what are you talking about?"

…And if she hadn't already been blushing since they left the cave, now would be a good time to start.

"I…" She forced herself to get a grip. After all, this was Kiba standing in front of her. She was by no means going to give him any more reasons to make fun of her. "I was just trying to say that if you and Akamaru want to warm up a bit before you head home, I guess Shikamaru is inside and that he wouldn't mind you visiting him."

"Oh. I see. Well, thanks, but we'll be fine," he replied. "No problem."

Kiba and Akamaru were gone before she could react. She quickly opened the door, as if she had forgotten about the weather for the last few minutes but was suddenly reminded, then she walked inside. Water was dripping from her clothes and her hair, but putting Kiba aside, she only had one thing on her mind right now:

_Please, tell me Shikamaru already went to bed..._

Of course he hadn't gone to bed. That would just be too much to ask for, wouldn't it? He was lying at the exact same spot as when Kaori had left. As his sister entered the room he slowly opened his eyes, a somewhat sly grin appearing on his face.

He studied her for a few seconds.

He noticed the water dripping off of her.

He checked his clock to find out what time it was.

_Here it comes..._

"I told you so."


End file.
